Demographer Peter Morrison inadvertantly created a a mini-firestorm when he posted his first district plan onto the city website without an explanation that it was only a starting point, and that public input and direction from the District Commission will refine the plan to include neighborhood identity.

                       Story and Photographs By John Murray

 The first district proposal for electing aldermen by district has arrived in Waterbury, and while some outspoken critics of the process are supportive, others see it driven by inside politics, gerrymandering, and a ridiculous concept of joining Bunker Hill and portions of the East End in one district. The plan was created by Dr. Peter Morrison of Nantucket, Massachusetts, described as an impartial demographer with an impeccable record of creating and defending district lines.

   “What we’ve created is simply a starting point,” Morrison cautioned. “At tomorrow night’s meeting I look forward to hearing from the District Commission and the public about how we can refine the plan.”

Johnathan Pape 

   Waterbury Police continue to investigate the discovery of a body on New Year’s Day in the driveway at 34 Mitchell Avenue. The body has been positively identified as Donald Curtis (9/18/64) of Waterbury and the medical examiner has ruled the death a homicide resulting from blunt force trauma to the head and chest.

Charles "Chuck" Pagano was named chairman of the District Commission by Waterbury Mayor Neil O'Leary. Pagano lives in the Bucks Hill neighborhood of Waterbury and is the Executive Vice President of Technology and Chief Technology Officer of ESPN, and has been with the company since 1979. Pagano is also the President of the Board of Directors for Holy Land LLC, the non-profit group operating Holy Land USA in Waterbury. O'Leary sought Pagano's leadership on the District Commission because Pagano is an unaffliated voter "who is above reproach." 

                    Story and Photographs By John Murray  

   When Waterbury voted to fundamentally change the structure of city government they handed a hot potato to Mayor Neil O'Leary who had less than six months to implement an historic aldermen by district initiative that won by a surprising 2000 vote mandate on November 4th. Legal counsel had to be hired, an eight-person District Commission had to be formed, a demographer had to be hired to analyze population and voting patterns, and most importantly, the city needed to be carved into five voting districts.

                                             Story By John Murray

   Picture a timeline as a python, and imagine the snake tightening it's coils around the city of Waterbury as it races to implement the aldermen by district ballot initiative passed in November. It is a vast and historic undertaking and city leaders have a tight schedule to follow to make it all work. Eight commissioners have been selected, an outside lawyer has been hired, and last Friday was the deadline for selecting the firm that will actually draw the lines on the five districts in Waterbury.

Daniel Casagrande of Cramer & Anderson. (Photo from Danbury News-Times)

                                        Story By John Murray   

   There is not much time for city leaders to implement aldermen by district for the November 2015 election, but Mayor Neil O’Leary said there is no choice. The process is moving ahead at a vigorous pace and an outside lawyer was hired yesterday to oversee the historic change in municipal government.

   “The voters spoke loud and clear on Election Day that they want aldermen by district,” O’Leary said, “and we’re going to give it to them.”

   But it’s no easy task.

Webster Bank CEO Jim Smith and Baltimore Oriole pitching coach Dave Wallace.

  The Waterbury Hall of Fame inducted four new members at a ceremony inside the Mattatuck Museum this afternoon; Daniel Buck the co-founder of The Waterbury Clock Company, Gerald Lamb, the first African-American elected to state office in American history, Dave Wallace, right, pitching coach of the World Champion Boston Red Sox in 2004 (and currently pitching coach of the Baltimore Orioles), and Webster Bank CEO Jim Smith (left).

   The Waterbury Observer just received a letter from Raechel Guest about the the challenges the city faces implementing aldermen by district in the coming months. Guest was a staunch supporter of electing aldermen by district and wrote this open letter to the 15 current aldermen who are tasked with executing the will of the people.

Dear Aldermen,

   After listening to Mayor O'Leary on WATR, it is my understanding that the boundaries for the new Aldermanic Districts will be drawn up by an outside consultant, guided by a commission to be selected by the Board of Aldermen. It is also my understanding that final approval of the plan rests with you.

                                   Commentary By John Murray

   We received a text message the other day that simply said, "Can we get together and talk about this?" Not familiar with the number, or what we'd be talking about, we responded with, "Who are you?"

   It was community activist Steve Schrag and he wanted to get together to discuss the need for a stop sign in the South End of the city. We were on deadline of publishing blockbuster stories about an interview with a juror from the trial of former Governor John Rowland, and a huge commentary about our take on aldermen by district, and couldn't get our minds around the minutiae of a stop sign request.

                           Story and Photographs By John Murray

   During jury selection for the trial of the United States of America versus John G .Rowland prospective jurors were handed questionnaires and asked to fill them out. Bob McCormack was in a crowd of more than 100 candidates, and when he read the first question he was sure that would be the end of his day in federal court. The question was, “Do you know John Rowland?”

   “Yes,” McCormack wrote. “Rowland was a 1975 classmate of mine at Holy Cross High School in Waterbury.”